I love the name Kate, it's so nice and simple which is great because there is no need for it to be shortened. I would love to name my girl Kate one day. Another thing is I think it is such a timeless name and will never go out of date. There are some great actresses who share the name too which is kinda cool. Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett being the best!

My cousin's name is Kate and I love her name. I think that it is not liked as much as it should be!

-- Anonymous User 5/13/2006

My name is Kate. I was given the middle name of "Suzanne", after my Mother. I was born in 1991, and, growing up, never met any other "Kates". I believe I knew one Katie, but no one else until I was about eleven, when I befriended a Kaitlin and a Katy. Sure, my name is fine. Classic enough. And short and simple. But, for me, I always wanted something more to my name. So, just something to consider if you are thinking of naming your daughter Kate. My parents were thinking of Cassanrda, Samantha, Lorraine, or Amber for me -- and I would've liked to have been a Cassie or Sam! But it's not a bad name, no. It's just a little more simple than I would've liked.

Actually, most Kates I know are contumelious, egocentric hypocrites that are immature and presumptuously arrogant. This has JUST DONE IT for me! However, I still like the name Kate, I think its simple, but rather scintillating to the ear.

I like Kate, but not by itself. I like the full name Katherine, but the nickname Kate is great too. I don't like Kath, or Kathy though. I think a combo like Emma or Anna Katherine, AKA Emma Kate is cute.

My full name is Katherine, but I've been "Kate" from day one. I love being a Kate, and I've had very few problems with it. The most common issue is being called "Katie". Just imagine if your name was Kevin, for instance, how weird it would be if someone called you "Keviny". That is how strange Katie sounds when applied to me. The only other problem is that the expression "hey!" sounds far too much like "Kate!" when called out. I can't tell you how many times I've turned around unnecessarily, craning to see who might have called me.

Overall, I think it is a versatile name in the sense that it can fit a girl who grows up to be a rock musician as well as a girl who will become a lawyer or politician. It also transitions well from childhood to adulthood. These are NOT my sentiments in regards to "Katie", however. To me, Katie evokes the image of a three-year-old Irish girl with pigtails. I think Katie takes the slightly sharp and sexy edge off of Kate and makes it too cutesy. If deciding on a nickname for your baby Katherine/Kathryn, chose KATE!

I'll second what kal said-- from a room away it's impossible to tell whether somebody's calling you or yelling at somebody else. (Worse, one of my brothers goes by Jake, so you can imagine the confusion.) Still, I've always really liked the name. It has much more independent feel than Katie, which is a little girl's name no matter how you look at it. I've always been glad my mother named me Katherine (for the express purpose of always calling me Kate) and gave me the option of more serious-sounding name when I needed one.

Plus, it's nice to have the "real" name on my birth certificate. Nicknames are nice, but they're just sounds-- they don't carry nearly the same weight of meaning as the full versions do.

Same here! My mom named me Kate from the start, but my parents actually had to come up with a formal name afterwards. I agree with you, even though I personally don't like the name Katherine (applied to myself, I actually like the name for other people for some reason), the name Katherine Ann sounds much more distinguished and has more legal sounding. I would have much rather prefered being a Kathryn, but I suppose people would always be confusing the spelling.

The issue with similar sounding things really annoys me too. Many many names have an "ay" sound, as well as "hey", and my natural reaction is thinking they were calling for me.

Kate isn’t a popular given name. The problem with Kate is that if your name is Katie, Katelyn, Katherine, Kathleen, Katrina, Katlin, and Caitlin etc. The child will most likely go by Kate. Now that is the main reason why it seems so popular. Kate by the way is my name, and I honestly have never met another Kate in my whole life. Ohhh I’m sure I’ll bump into just a Kate sometime down the line. Honestly I'm glad my real name isn't Katherine, I like being Kate it fits me well, where as I'm defiantly not a Katherine.

I like Kate, just Kate not Katherine or Katelyn. I have noticed Americans tend to think you need a “real name” on a birth certificate whereas the British think otherwise and use mostly “nicknames” as a full name.

Somebody posted above Kate is a very popular name in Hollywood. The reason being is because Hollywood can't control people like they used too. Basically most actors and actresses don't use stage names anymore.

-- Anonymous User 12/9/2006

Katharine Hepburn also went by Kate. I think Kate has so much more weight to it than Katie, which just sounds simpleton.

-- Anonymous User 12/28/2006

I've always loved the Kate family of names. I love Kate on its own or as a nickname for Kathleen or maybe even Katarina. It's pretty, timeless, sweet and classic. Always in style. There may be a number of Kates around but it is in a timeless way rather than trendy.

Famous bearer KT Tunstall's real name is Kate. She dropped the name Kate because she thought it sounded too "farmer's daughter." It also made her think of a buxom lass baking bread for her man working in the fields. She had no problem with that, but it's wasn't how she pictured a rock star.

-- Anonymous User 2/18/2007

I'm a Kate, just a Kate, and quite frankly - I love my name. I love the sound of it. I love how short it is. I love everything about it. Shakespeare liked it, so you should too!

My birth name is Katie, my family calls me Kate at times, and my friends only call me Katie. I like the name Kate, I think it’s really cool, but when I hear someone call me Kate it just doesn’t sound right, like it’s not really me? What can I say, I’m a Katie. =)

I don't agree with what some of you are saying. Kate isn't a popular name at all, it's just a popular nickname. Anyhow I don't care how many people use this name or how popular it is. I love the name Kate and I love how classic it is.

-- Anonymous User 5/27/2007

It's not as popular as Ashley and Emily that's for sure. Kate has been around since the 1800's and is a great name that will never go out of style.

I like Kate as a nickname for Katharine or Kathleen. Like some people I feel like you should have a proper or more formal first name, and then a less formal nickname. For example, my mom named me Joan but everyone refers to me as Joanie.

For the most part, I find Kate very classy and simple and I really like it! I don't like Katie/Katy though. Katie/Katy doesn't seem to age very well.

My given name is Katharine, but no one has ever called me that, not even my parents- I've always been a Kate. I used to not like it, because it seemed so plain and boring, but now I really do: I think it's sharp and classic yet modern. It brings to mind someone cool, elegant and intelligent, a kind of Kate Hepburn type figure. Also, I've honestly never met anyone else called Kate- plenty of Katherines, which I find too dowdy and common, and a million Katies- I'm sorry, that name just reminds me of immensely annoying five year old girls. People often call me Katie and I have to correct them. One other problem: whenever people say "Ok", or worse, "'k" I think they're seeing my name, which can get a little confusing.

When Katey got older, if she wanted something more mature than 'Katey' she could just drop her 'y' and become a Kate. I think this is very clever, and I like the name Kate. It works for a little girl and also an young woman and an old lady.

We named our daughter Kate Suzanne and it means "pure"-"lily of the valley" together. Very beautiful. I was told Kate would be too common, but have only know 1 other Kate my daughter's age, and only 1 other about 4 years older. Kaitlyn and other forms are common and if they start to go by Kate when they get older, well then - yes it will be more common, but I wouldn't change it. I love it!

"I kissed a girl, and I liked it, the taste of her cherry chapstick."I used to LOVE the name Kate, really love it (I prefer all the Catherine diminutives - Cathy, Kate, Katy - as opposed to the actual name itself) but now I can't hear it without the above lyrics springing to mind (because they're sung by KATE Perry).

My name is Kate, and full name is Kathleen. I agree with the others that when people say "Hey!" from across the room it sounds like "Kate!". I haven't found it very common which has been nice, and neither is Kathleen. People usually think it's short for Katherine and I like telling people that it's not! Usually I have to correct people who want to call me Katie, but that's not a very big deal to me. I love my name!

Kate is my name, and I also have the "hey!" problem. The worst is when someone shortens OK to just "kay"--that always gets me. Despite that, though, I really like my name. It's hard to misspell or mispronounce, and it sounds nice. :)

Kate Reinders is an American stage actress, well-known for roles in 21st century musical theatre. She first came to prominence as June in the 2003 Broadway revival of "Gypsy". She then originated the role of Glinda in the musical "Wicked" in its Chicago production, performing from June 2005 through January 2006, and later reprised the role on Broadway, from May 2006 through January 2007. She is also a member of the band TASTiSKANK, alongside fellow Broadway actress Sarah Litzsinger.

I am a Kate, short for Kathleen, and I love my name. I read a baby name book (Beyond Jennifer and Jason) that stated 'There is something invincible about Kate', and I couldn't agree more. I think it's a simple but pretty name, and one that won't seem faddish or dated in twenty years. It's popular but not too popular.

One drawback, like a previous user (Kal) stated, is that people seem to have an ingrained opposition to calling us Kate and love calling us Katie instead. It's cute when my grandma calls me that - the rest of you need to step off. :D I've also been called Kat, Kathy, Katya, Katelyn. I think sometimes people feel Kate is not a proper or full name and that they need to rechristen you.

I just don't like this name. Sorry to all of you Kate's out there, but I just don't like it one bit. I have yet to meet one Kate (Kate being a nickname or short for something else) that doesn't rub me the wrong way. I have also never met a blonde Kate. They ALWAYS have unremarkable brown hair.

-- Anonymous User 12/10/2010

My real name is Paige and when I was born my mom wanted to name me something long that I can shorten and my dad wanted something plain and simple and he wanted to name me Erin. Years later I figure out he also would have named me Kate. Which personally I like but I hate the nickname Katie or Kat.

There is a famous poem by Christina Rossetti titled "Cousin Kate."The titular Kate is a good and pure country girl of the Victorian era, who meets and marries a Lord, and becomes rich from it; much to the dismay of his former lover, who narrates us through the poem.

Kate Winslet is a popular actress who starred as Rose Dewitt Bukater in Titanic (One of the best films EVER!). I like the name Kate it is a bit overused but it's overused for a reason! On a young girl it wound sound very popular and pretty:) xoxo.

I know most people think it's a nickname for Catherine/Katherine and it is, but I actually like Kate as a stand-alone name. It's a modern alternative to actually naming a girl Catherine/Katherine. I once heard of a girl whose legal name (at birth) was Kate Marie.

I like the simplicity of the name Kate, yet I do not find it boring at all... I think it sounds very pretty to the ear. My name is Emily Kate and my family runs it together and my grandparents will sometimes call me Kate or Katie. I agree with the person that posted further up the page.. I do not like being called Katie... It sounds so childish.

Kate Mosse is an English author and broadcaster. She is the author of a novel, Labyrinth, which has been translated into more than 37 other languages.-Wikipedia

-- Anonymous User 5/19/2012

I think this could be a more mature nickname for Katherine that Katie, but also a full name. Very pretty either way!

-- Anonymous User 1/13/2013

Kate as a first name is not common. Unfortunately most Katherines go by the nickname Kate so it seems like it is common but it actually isn't. Most time you ask a girl called Kate her name she will say Katherine etc so Kate is not common.

-- Anonymous User 2/3/2013

I think Katie is a more common nickname for Katherine than Kate is... That being said, I prefer this to Katie, which I don't mind, (although it is a little childish) but its waaayy too common. Kate is a lot classier in my opinion. I think it can work as a nickname for Katherine/Kathryn or as a full name, and it makes a really good nickname too. I know two girls whose full name is Kate, and they're both under the age of ten, which made me think it was very popular, but in reality it's not. I can see a baby named Kate, a teenager named Kate, an adult named Kate, and an old woman named Kate easily :)

-- Anonymous User 2/18/2013

Personally, I think this should stay a nickname. It's nice as a nickname, but as a given name? I don't think so. I do like Kate Winslet. Can't stand Kate Hudson or Kate Moss, though.

I am the only Cate (with a C) that I have met, and personally I prefer my spelling. There's a slightly more classic/historical feel to it. Besides which, my full first name is Catherine, and it really just doesn't make sense to have a nickname that starts with a K when my full name starts with a C. So consider this spelling, but I would warn that people ALWAYS get it wrong the first time and never bother to ask.

-- Anonymous User 5/16/2013

In the book 18, Peter's sweet and energetic sister is named Katherine "Kate", but sometimes Peter calls her Kitty.

-- Anonymous User 7/15/2013

Whether your real name is "Kate", or your real name is "Catherine/Katherine", I think it's a nice nickname or name. :)

My name is Kate and I live in England where Kate is known more for being a first name so I never get anyone asking me what my real name is like you may get if you live in America where it is more of a nickname for something else.

I think my name is short but very pretty and sophisticated. I don't mind the nickname Katie but I much prefer being called Kate as it's more mature and grown up sounding.

I love the name Kate! I think it's silly how some people can't get over the fact that this is a full name and has been for a long time now! Kate is beautiful and classy as a first name and it certainly does not need to be a nickname for Katherine any more.

-- Anonymous User 1/16/2014

This name is so celebrity-like and famous sounding that just about anyone can give it a good impression, even when used as a nickname.

I am called "Kate", but like many others, my given name is "Kathleen." As a child I was called "Kathy", and I hated it. Once grown, I used "Kathleen". One day, a friend asked: "you don't look like a "Kathleen" to me, may I call you "Kate"? I've enjoyed being "Kate" ever since. One drawback is that when I moved south from new england; some folks started calling me "Katie", which turned into "Katy-Jo"! (My last name is Johannsen.) So instead of being "Kate Johannsen", these folks think I'm "Katy-Jo Hansen"! Please folks; I live in the south, but I'm not THAT southern!

My real name is Katerina, but Kate is the English name I use in formal situations. Katie, my primary and informal English name, is a sunny and youthful name, and it's the one I'll use for the rest of my life. But in the professional and academic worlds-with teachers, employers, and colleagues-Kate is much better. I spent years trying to find a fun, informal nickname that fit-I tried Kiki and Kitty and Katina and lots of other Katherine nicknames until settling on Katie at 19-but at 7 years old I decided to tell the teachers I was called Kate and I've been using it in professional and academic situations ever since. It's easily pronounceable, very sharp, and very clean. Plus, it doesn't get the obligatory "oh, that's an interesting name, where are you from?" attention that my full name gets, and it's not at all cutesy or childish.

Kate Beckinsale, best known for her role as Selene in the Underworld series.

Kate Winslet, probably best known for her work as Rose in Titanic, but her most recent work sees her take on the role of Erudite leader Jeanine Matthews in Divergent and The Divergent Series: Insurgent.